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blessed. The employments which now occupy him there, as fully declared. As our forerunner he hath entered within the veil. He appears in the presence of God for us. He maketh perpetual intercession for his people. I go, saith he, to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God. In my Father's house are many mansions. I go to prepare a place for you. I will come again, and receive you to myself, that where I am, there you may be also. The circumstances of his coming again, are distinctly foretold. The sounding of the last trumpet, the resurrection of the dead, the appearance of the Judge, and the solemnity with which he shall discriminate the good from the bad, are all described. The very words in which he shall pronounce the final sentence, are recited in our hearing: Come, ye blessed of my Father! inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Then shall the holy and the just be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. They shall enter with him into the city of the living God. They shall possess the new earth and new heavens, wherein dwelleth righteousness. God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. They shall behold his face in righteousness, and be satisfied with his likeness for ever. By recording such a train of striking circumstances and facts, the Gospel familiarizes us in some measure with a future state. By accommodating this great discovery, in so useful a manner, to the conceptions of men, it furnishes a strong intrinsic evidence of its divine origin.

THUS, upon the whole, whether you consult your reason, or listen to the discoveries of revelation, you behold our argument confirmed; you behold a life

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of piety and virtue issuing in immortal felicity. Of what worldly pursuit can it be pronounced, that its reward is certain? Look every where around you, and you shall see, that the race is far from being always to the swift, or the battle to the strong. The most diligent, the most wise, the most accomplished, may, after all their labours, be disappointed in the end; and be left to suffer the regret of having spent their strength for nought. But for the righteous is ·laid up the crown of life. Their final happiness is prepared in the eternal plan of Providence, and secured by the labours and sufferings of the Saviour of the world.

Cease, then, from your unjust complaints against virtue and religion. Leave discontent and peevishness to worldly men. In no period of distress, in no moment of disappointment, allow yourselves to suspect that piety and integrity are fruitless. In every state of being, they lead to happiness. If you enjoy not at present their full rewards, it is because the season of recompence is not yet come. For, in due season you shall reap. There is a time which is proper for reward, and there is a period which belongs to trial. How long the one should last, and when the other should arrive, belongs not to you to determine. It is fixed by the wise, though unknown decree of the Almighty. But be assured, that He that cometh shall come, and will not tarry. He shall come in due season, to restore perfect order among his works; to bring rest to the weary, comfort to the afflicted, and just retribution to all men. Behold, saith the faithful and true Witness, I come quickly, and my reward is with me. To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the

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midst of the paradise of God. I will give him the morning star. I will make him a pillar in my temple. He shall be clothed in white raiment; and shall sit down with me on my throne.*

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SERMON XVI.

On the IMPORTANCE of ORDER in CONDUCT.

1 CORINTH. xiv. 40.

Let all things be done-in order.

RELIGION, like every regular and well-conducted system, is composed of a variety of parts; each of which possesses its separate importance, and contributes to the perfection of the whole. Some graces are essential to it; such as faith and repentance, the love of God, and the love of our neighbour; which, for that reason, must be often inculcated on men. There are other dispositions and habits which, though they hold not so high a rank, yet are necessary to the introduction and support of the former; and therefore, in religious exhortations, these also justly claim a place. Of this nature is that regard to order, method, and regularity, which the apostle enjoins us in the text to carry through the whole of life. Whether you consider it as, in itself, a moral duty, or not, yet I hope soon to convince you that it is essential to the proper discharge of almost all duties; and merits, upon that account, a greater degree of attention than is commonly paid to it in a religious view.

If you look abroad into the world, you may be satisfied at the first glance, that a vicious and libertine life is always a life of confusion. Thence it is natural to infer, that order is friendly to religion. As the neglect of it coincides with vice, so the pre

servation of it must assist virtue. By the appointment of Providence, it is indispensably requisite to worldly prosperity. Thence arises a presumption, that it is connected also with spiritual improvement. When you behold a man's affairs, through negligence and misconduct, involved in disorder, you naturally conclude that his ruin approaches. You may at the same time justly suspect, that the causes which affect his temporal welfare, operate also to the prejudice of his moral interests. The apostle teaches us in this chapter, that God is not the author of confusion.* He is a lover of order; and all his works are full of order. But, where confusion is, there is, its close attendant, every evil work. t In the sequel of this discourse, I shall point out some of those parts of conduct wherein it is most material to virtue that order take place; and then shall conclude with showing the high advantages which attend it. Allow me to recommend to you, order in the conduct of your affairs; order in the distribution of your time; order in the management of your fortune; order in the regulation of your amusements; order in the arrangement of your society. Thus let all things be done in order.

I. MAINTAIN order in the conduct of your worldly affairs. Every man, in every station of life, has some concerns, private, domestic, or public, which require successive attention; he is placed in some sphere of active duty. Let the employments which belong to that sphere be so arranged, that each may keep its place without jostling another; and that which regards the world may not interfere with what

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